Thrifty Treasures Monday: The Junker's Jackpot!

I'm soooo sorry for being completely MIA this past week... lots of projects going on-- some blog-related (which I can't WAIT to show you), and some regular-life-related :) I'm DYING to show you my latest big DIY project, but I have to try to take good decent pictures and write a proper tutorial first :) So I thought I'd pop in and show you the Junking Jackpot that I hit last Saturday!

Yes, I got an old window, a turquoise Ball jar, and a pair of Restoration-Hardware-look-alike pendant lights-- each at a different rummage sale, and all for the grand total of $5! Yes, I said $5!!!!!!! A veritable thrifting trifecta,  if you ask me! :D

I found the old window at a rummage sale raising money for our local cemetery (seriously, they have rummage sales for just about anything around here! Even our local Juvenile Detention Center has a yearly rummage sale!) The lady at the "checkout" told me that the window came from a house that was torn down to make a parking lot for our lone town "skyscraper" (it's actually a 14-story apartment building, but it's the only building in town that's taller than three stories!) :) So not only did I get a window for $1, but I got the story behind it, too ;) And I'm planning on hanging this window up as part of my fall decorating! (which I hope to get done today or tomorrow).

I have been drooooooling over the turquoise Ball jars that have been all over blogland this summer, and I've seen a few for sale, but usually for $5+ apiece! This one was at a typical household garage sale... I had already done two laps around the tables, looking for anything interesting (I try to buy SOMETHING at every yard sale I stop at, even if it's for a quarter, just to encourage the seller), when I spotted this beauty! There was no price tag on it, so I asked the seller and she said "$1 apiece!" (A lesson I'm learning more and more: ALWAYS ask if something isn't marked, don't just assume that it's out of your price range!)  Unfortunately, this was the last one left, but I was thrilled to walk out of there with my very first, very own turquoise Ball jar for only a dollar!

But my FAVORITE find of the day came from my first stop-- the Community Rummage Sale held annually at our local fairgrounds! Their prices are generally even cheaper than a private rummage sale, so I was looking forward to scoring some great deals! In the past I've gotten some nice end tables, gilded antique frames, and more, for extremely cheap! This year as I circled the many tables, I was a bit disappointed that they didn't have nearly as much as they normally do. The lighting table, where I was especially hoping to find a chandelier or two, was pretty bare. But I didn't despair too long, for just across the aisle, buried on the electrical table among old extension cords and outdated corded phones, I spotted these two beauties! They were marked $2.00 each, but one was missing the light bulb socket (which you can find in any home improvement store), so when I pointed this out to the lady at the front, she let me have that one for only $1. So I ended up with two gorgeous pendant lights for $3.00!!!

Even better, when I got home I looked at the Restoration Hardware website , and found these:

Source: restorationhardware.com via Kathryn on Pinterest

Their 8" Clemson pendants cost "only" $259 apiece! Practically the only difference between theirs and mine is that mine hangs with a chain instead of a rod! So instead of $518, I spent $3-- a savings of $515.00!!! (Not that I'd ever have spent $500+ on two lights, but it's pretty cool to think how much I COULD have spent-- and it helps my hubby tolerate me bringing more "stuff" home! LOL) I can't wait to hang these talk my Superman into hanging them over my kitchen island!

Of course, I got some miscellanous smaller deals, too... like some cute clothes for my little monkeys, and a couple of books I'm looking forward to reading-- if I can find the time! They'll probably have to wait until wintertime, when there are no more rummage sales tantalizing me on every corner, with the potential for incredible finds like these!

So have you scored any great deals lately? :) Are you enjoying the final few weeks of yard-sale-ing, like me, before they all go away for the winter? :(

Parties I link to:

Sunday:

• Southern Hospitality Blog: Thrifty Treasures

Monday:

• Craft-O-Maniac: Craft-O-Maniac Mondays
• Flour Me With Love: Mix-It-Up Monday
• This Gal Cooks (formerly Jam's Corner): Marvelous Mondays Link Party

Tuesday:

• Adventures Of a DIY Mom: Terrific Tuesdays
• Coastal Charm: Nifty Thrifty Tuesday
• Elizabeth & Co.: Be Inspired Link Party
• Mercy Ink Blog: All Things Heart & Home Link-up
• My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia: Tuesday's Treasures
• Uncommon: Uncommonly Yours Link Party
• The Winthrop Chronicles: Share It Link Party

Wednesday:

• Embracing Change: Creative Inspirations Link Party
• Hooking Up w/ House of Hepworths
• Vintage Gwen: Show & Share

Thursday:

• Live, Laugh, Rowe: Live Laugh Linky Thursday
• My Repurposed Life: Catch As Catch Can
• The Shabby Creek Cottage: Transformation Thursday
• Two Yellow Birds Decor: Thursday's Temptation

Friday:

• A Heart 4 Home: Finished Friday
• Chic on a Shoestring Decorating: Flaunt It Friday
• Decorating Insanity: Furniture Friday
• Five Days, Five Ways: Feature Friday Free-for-All
• Jennifer Rizzo: Fabulously Creative Friday
• Miss Mustard Seed: Furniture Feature Friday
• The Cottage Market: Junkin' Joe Party
• Two Sasters: TGIF Party

Saturday:

• It's Overflowing: Overflowing with Creativity Party
• Classy Clutter: Spotlight Saturday